Very good, Dan. I think one of the biggest problems with flat organizations is that you have one leader depended on for communication by too many people. If the hierarchy were not laden with authority, the levels would actually make it easier to communicate. I can talk with 10 or 20 people in a meaningful way every day, but make it 100 or 200 and there’s no chance.

Thanks Susan. Your comment speaks to the power off small teams with public forums. However, if the culture doesn’t respect and honor transparency and candor, communication in public ways is a waste of time.

I’m remembering my conversation with the CEO of RedHat. They are a very public organization. Decisions are slow but connections seem strong for a dispersed organization.

Dan, this is one of your best ever, never mind for this year! The joints, interfaces and overlaps are where the interesting stuff happens, in my experience, and it’s where the fastest learning and quickest wins are often to be found!

Thanks Mitch. There is some good research that brief one-on-ones with direct reports are very effective. Perhaps twice a month for 20 minutes is a way to interact. If people are in the same building, a spontaneous encounter in the hallway is useful. We can pay attention to those brief contacts.

Dan, I’m not sure if you’ve ever posted about the dangers of “over-communicating”. What are your thoughts on the toxic risks of an excessive “Reply All” culture? Have you ever observed an organization where out of positive intentions, employees were “forced” to communicate more? In believe that communication must be sincere, not compulsory and this can be frustrating and problematic. Would love your thoughts.

Thanks jcrivas. I haven’t written about over-communicating, that I recall. The topic you bring up is important because both quality and quantity are factors in success.

Email isn’t the best way to communicate to connect, in my opinion. Most emails are too long. In addition, email shouldn’t be used to discuss complex issues. There are tools like slack that enable people to have an on-going conversation in a more natural style.

Some organizations have adopted a daily team standing meeting at the beginning of the day. They’re brief and focuses on current issues, things to that need to be shared, success stories, leanings, goals, etc. The term ‘standing’ is literal.

Dispersed teams may need to use video conferencing as an option for communication. In general brief frequent conversations serve to keep people connected more than long meetings.